Exciting news from the dubstep trenches concerning master woofer-wobbler Benga - he is set to release his sophomore LP! I’m surprised it’s only his second full-length, there is so much vinyl of his music in my home, but I guess they’re all singles. The new album is titled Diary of An Afro Warrior and the first single will be “Night.” The single is set for release on 5 November and the album is scheduled to drop shortly after. “Night” has been a huge hit in the dubstep clubs already. It’s a collaboration with DMZ’s Coki and the infectious melody just comes rumbling out of speaker boxes. The press release describes some of the excitement about “Night”:
Without any question, this is THE Dubstep anthem of 2007, possibly even a bigger anthem than Skream’s legendary late 2005’ ‘Midnight Request Line’. All the DJ’s want it, all the grime MC’s go mad for it, while clubbers are lapping it up too. This 12″ release heralds the graduation of Benga, from the name in every dubstep DJ’s bag to an artist whose acclaim reaches much farther than that of his own genre. For the avid dub-steppers amongst you, this press release is almost inconsequential. For the uninitiated you need only listen to any show on Rinse FM, glance at the Hatcha & Crazy D playlist on Kiss FM, or Mary Anne Hobbs’ BBC Radio 1 show to know that Benga’s is the name on every DJs fingertips right now.
Benga Night Tracklist
a. “Night”
b. “Drumz West”
bb. “Emotions”
I haven’t heard the B-sides yet (that I am aware of) but, hopefully I will next weekend when he plays here in SF. Here’s what the press release says about them:
Drumz West’ features Benga’s trademark snare, forcing the listener to continuously shift focus between the skank-inducing bassline and the melody of the synths. The final track, ’Emotions’ showcases Benga’s versatility revealing his affinity with house music.
Benga is also playing some live shows this month, including a dubstep party in SF this weekend:
I’m excited to see both Benga and Hatcha in the same night. And you know I’m going to take pictures and put them up here, so check back next week for a review. Oh, and if anyone has an extra copy of Benga’s Crunked Up White Label that they want to send me, don’t hesitate to email me!
What Do You Think? ↓
1 Molli Fire // Dec 28, 2007 at 16:12
I looked everywhere for this album last night (Boomkat, BLEEP, Toolbox, etc) and found that no one has it in stock yet. I guess that means that Diary of an Afro Warrior has not been released yet, despite the press release saying it would be out shortly. I will try to find out what’s up and when it will actually be available. Someone had it on their Top 10 albums of 2007 list, so maybe promo copies went out? If anyone knows more, drop a line!
2 Molli Fire // Jan 2, 2008 at 17:53
Update:
I still haven’t found any official news about Diary of an Afro Warrior, but I was listening to a RinseFM show from a while back with Benga droppin bass bomb after bass bomb and N-Type pon di mic. They said the album is due out in February, so I guess thaz wazz up. I’ll post a full article in the news section when more info drops.
Archive of N-Type b2b Benga on RinseFM
Loads of fat tunes and remixes including stuff from Diary of an Afro Warrior inna di mix.
3 noodles // Apr 2, 2008 at 17:28
big tunes by benga man of the moment… checkout “m2j” & “price” on DPR. recordings
also idub ep from groovechronicles clip of “hunter” “lovers rox” up on myspace…
4 Molli Fire // Apr 3, 2008 at 13:13
Cool, thanks noodles!
to check those out, go to:
http://www.myspace.com/dprrecordings
5 Molli Fire // Apr 3, 2008 at 13:16
And, of course, Diary of an Afro Warrior is out now. Our album review is up at:
Benga - Diary of an Afro Warrior album review